Federal Judge Dismisses Oath Keepers Sedition Case at DOJ Request

A federal judge on Tuesday granted the Justice Department’s request to overturn the seditious conspiracy convictions of Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes and other group members, effectively closing the final criminal case stemming from the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol assault. The Department of Justice moved in April to vacate the convictions after the Trump administration had previously commuted the sentences of the defendants, though they did not receive full pardons.

U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta, who presided over the original trials, wrote that the government was seeking to “absolve these Defendants of crimes against the United States itself,” but said he had no choice but to comply with the administration’s request. He added that the decision “diminishes the gravity of that day” and “excuses criminal acts that caused a centuries-long pillar of our democracy — the peaceful transfer of presidential power — to buckle.”

The ruling ends the last prosecution aimed at holding individuals accountable for the Capitol breach. Earlier convictions of Oath Keepers leaders and members of the Proud Boys for plotting to disrupt the transfer of power remain in place. Rhodes, who was released from prison in January 2025 after his sentence was commuted, has denied wrongdoing and previously described himself as a “political prisoner.”

Attorney James Lee Bright, who represented Rhodes, expressed disappointment with the judge’s opinion, calling the inclusion of personal commentary “unnecessary.” President Donald Trump has argued that the Jan. 6 defendants were treated unfairly and that the pardons were intended to address a “grave national injustice.” More than 1,200 individuals have been convicted of offenses related to the Jan. 6 attack, including roughly 200 who pleaded guilty to assaulting law-enforcement officers.